Here's another vote for Art to Frames. I do 75-100 frames a year and they are very competitive and I've never had a problem in the 5+ years I've used them.
When is copyright created? Do I have to register it?
Copyright is secured automatically when the work is created, and a work is “created” when it is fixed in a copy or phone record for the first time. In general, copyright registration is a legal formality intended to make a public record of the basic facts of a particular copyright. However, registration is not a condition of copyright protection.
What are the benefits of registering copyright?
While you’re not required to register in order to have copyright ownership and protection, having it registered can provide you some advantages- a few are listed here for you:
Ability to file suit – If you want to file suit, a registration application must either have been granted or denied, even if the infringement of your works has occurred
Public Record – Registration puts your copyright ownership into public record and automatically negates any defense (although ignorance of law is not a true defense) for the infringer to claim they didn’t know that either it was copyrighted or who was the owner. You do not have to have it in public record in order to affix a notice to all works.
Damages and Attorney’s Fees – Money talks right? If you have filed your registration for copyright within 3 months of publishing the work, or any time prior to the infringing action, copyright registration gives you the ability to recover statutory damages and fees for attorneys in the legal action. When applicable, statutory damages for infringing uses of a work usually entitle you to a pre-determined amount of damages (ranging from $750 to $30,000 per work infringed).
In the end it all comes down to dollars and cents. The question to ask is will your damages exceed your legal costs? If not, lesson learned. If so find an attorney that specializes in copyright laws.I think the best advice so far is to start by contacting the person (infringer) and ask them to stop using your image.
I'd take a look at Think Tank; https://www.thinktankphoto.com/pages/belt-systems
I've used them for well over 10 years. Very well made and the amount of bags, clips, etc. will fit just about any need you may have.
I have used Delkin Devices memory cards exclusively for well over a decade. They are somewhat costly but I have never lost an image due to failure.
For many years when I go on extended trips I've used a Sanho Hyperdrive Colorspace UDMA to download my cards daily. While somewhat expensive it has never let me down and eliminates needing to travel with a bunch of cards.
Most Nikon firmware updates will render auto focus inoperable for some 3rd party lenses. It often happens with Sigma lenses. If you do the firmware update using the SD card you can rollback the firmware to the previous version the same way. As an example if you upgrade from version 1.02 to 1.03 and your lens stops working the way it used to simply "upgrade" back to 1.02. There are plenty of sites where you can find older firmware versions to download. Perform the "upgrade" to 1.02 and you're back to where you were. The camera doesn't know 1.02 isn't truly an upgrade. After experiencing auto focus issues due to an upgrade I by practice download the current version of firmware so I have a copy which frees me up to perform future upgrades and be able to roll back the version without fear of not being able to find the older version.
I've shot sports professionally for longer than I care to admit. While I have no experience with the new Sigma 70-200 the older models failed in comparison to the Nikon 70-200. I'm still using the VRI version of the Nikon lens because I've found little reason to upgrade. Nikon pro line lenses are bulletproof. In the past Sigma's QC was suspect. I've sent several copies of Sigma lenses back until I got one I was happy with. Over the years I've replaced all but my Sigma 50mm f/1.4with Nikon glass. At $1500 I'd perhaps look at a used Nikon 70-200 f/2.8 which can be had for under $1000. One word of caution with Sigma lenses are that every once and awhile when Nikon puts out new firmware for its camera bodies the Sigma lenses no longer auto focus. I recently upgraded my D4S bodies to discover this. I had to roll back that firmware on one of my bodies to have the Sigma 50mm work.
I've used an earlier model of the HyperDrive Colorspace UDMA3 1TB Portable Storage and Backup Device with Wi-Fi with great success while traveling for over a decade now. Never found the need for anything else even over a month long trip. Also never found the need to bring a bunch of extra cards as you can simply download your images on a daily basis. The other thing I liked is that the screen allows you to see your images once they are transferred to the device thus avoiding the need for a laptop. If you feel the need for a redundant backup you can then copy them to an external HDDR.
I think it really depends on your budget. I use https://www.amazon.com/RFN-4s-Wireless-Shutter-Release-connection/dp/B005PCDSBQ What I like most about this trigger is how small it is.
I also use Pocket Wizards with an ACC cable. Pocket Wizards seem to be the industry standard but come at a price.